AXYS Australia is a
not for profit organisation run by volunteers who have a direct link to someone with an X & Y chromosome variation. We are individuals, parents, families, health professionals and allies who are continuously working hard to support, empower and inform.
Australian X & Y Spectrum Support (AXYS) help support individuals and families living with X & Y sex chromosome variants in particular; Klinefelter Syndrome/XXY, XYY, XXX, XXYY, XXXY, XXXXY and associated variants.
We are here to increase awareness and to inform the health and education sectors and broader community on what these X and Y sex chromosome variants are and the impact it has on individuals and families and how they can better support, guide and implement appropriate tools and treatment plans. We aim to ensure that everyone living with an X & Y chromosome variant has the opportunity to reach their fullest potential living a happy life with minimal impacts from possible health related issues.
We can offer a wealth of knowledge, advice, guidance and support but it’s important to note that we are not medical professionals. We can help direct you to find the right health care professionals that can give you supportive, knowledgeable and specific advice.
What can we do
AXYS offers a wide variety of support, information and guidance. These include: a dedicated private and confidential Facebook group with members from all around Australia who can offer great support and information, we have informal casual catch ups, an annual information seminar, annual AGM and one on one phone or email support. We are here to offer what support and information you need.
Individual rights
At AXYS we recognise and respect everyone’s individual rights and celebrate the diversity of the human family, including sex and gender, skin colour, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, socioeconomic status, physical characteristics and mental abilities. We respect the rights of individuals to self-identify as they choose in gender and sexuality. We embrace the great diversities of living with an X & Y chromosome variation and endeavour to ensure all individuals feel supported.
Our Team
AXYS is run by volunteers who dedicate their own time to ensure we can further increase awareness, support and empower others. We have a vast array of skill sets in which we work together to achieve great positive change for individuals living with and X & Y chromosome variant.
Our Board
AXYS is a NFP organisation. Our board members include allies, family members and those with lived experience. Our current board members are:
Luisa Amati
AXYS President
Luisa recently joined the AXYS Australia Board. She lives in the western suburbs of Melbourne with her partner and two children. in 2016, her son was diagnosed prenatally with Klinefelter’s Syndrome and since then she has been on a personal journey to learn more about his diagnosis and how we can be supported through his diagnosis and how he can be supported through life. She hopes to share with you her real-life experiences, and what she has learned, and in turn help others.
Whilst her family is her full-time passion, she enjoys cooking, reading and travelling.
Richard Bradley
Vice-President
Richard has lived experience of XXY, joining the AXYS board to provide peer support, and education to the wider community and health professionals.
He is a PhD research student interested in examining health and disability outcomes in children and adolescents with Klinefelter’s Syndrome based on which diagnostic pathways are accessed during diagnosis and subsequent clinical management. Richard as a lived-experience researcher, also co-produces research with tertiary hospitals ensuring the unique needs and expectations of the Australian X & Y community are reflected in research design, execution and the evaluation of results.
He lives in regional NSW with his partner and stepson. When he’s not conducting research he enjoys skydiving and the thrill of pure adrenaline fuelled weightlessness.
Michelle Wilson
Michelle is a mother of four, the youngest of the tribe, Hudson being diagnosed with Klinefelter Syndrome via NIPT testing. Michelle and her family live in Sydney and run their own family business.
With the birth of her son and his diagnosis, Michelle became passionate about seeking further knowledge on Klinefelter’s and understanding firsthand how a diagnosis can change a path.
Joining the AXYS Board Michelle hopes, to assist not only her son but his peers, newly diagnosed families, and the boys and men that walk this path before him; to be seen, to be heard, to have access to a community that supports them and further educate the allied health providers our community relies on through the wonderful connections, wealth of knowledge and amazing individuals within AXYS Australia and their community.
Chloe Hanna
Chloe lives in the country outside of Melbourne with her family and garden. She is a clinical coordinator working in Melbourne, with a focus on supporting individuals with variations in their reproductive development and their families. She has a background in genetic counselling.
Chloe’s key interest is to enhance the multidisciplinary approach to care for families, as well as developing links between individuals, peer support networks, health care groups and the broader community to enable a more holistic and transparent system! She has a lot to learn and is grateful to be given the opportunity to be part of AXYS.
NB* The Australian Privacy Act 1988 considers ‘genetic information’ to be ‘sensitive information’. ‘Sensitive information’ is a subset of personal information and as such, it is afforded higher levels of protection. As a peer-led organisation of people living with a genetic difference, no AXYS members are legally required to publicly disclose their genetic status or genetic diagnoses.
